Badkulla, June 27: Trinamul national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee has stated that conferring citizenship through an act to all the bonafide citizens of the country who cast their votes and elect representatives is an “insult”.
Diamond Harbour MP told this in his speech at a public meeting in Nadia’s Badkulla while accusing the BJP of misleading the Matua community raising doubts about the centre’s willingness to implement the citizenship act as no rule could be finalized so far since the bill was passed in the parliament in December 2019.
Abhishek alleged that the BJP has ‘trapped’ the Matua community with a fake promise of citizenship to win elections. He urged the community members to give the party at the centre a befitting reply in the ensuing rural poll for the ‘lie’ that misled them while raising questions about the community’s decision to vote for the BJP.
Reminding the Matua community about their purported identity crisis, Abhishek said, “The BJP assured you to implement the citizenship act. But
even after 42 months since the bill was passed in December 2019, they could not so far frame the rules, whereas it hardly takes a maximum of a month or two to complete the job. But see what they have done in reality during these four years…nothing”.
Asserting that there is no need for ‘citizenship’ in any separate identical manner, Abhishek reiterated that it is a natural right of the people who cast their votes and elect representatives to the legislative.
“You have EPIC, you have an Aadhaar card…you enjoy the government’s beneficial schemes. You cast your vote to elect a representative to local administration, and you elect MLA, MP. So if people like you are declared as unauthorized, then the people you have elected are also illegal and they should step down. BJP has been misleading you. So never fell trapped by them”, he said adding that nobody can rob their rights as long as Mamata Banerjee’s government would remain in power”, he added.
Trinamul’s concern for the Matua comes in the backdrop of the 2021 assembly poll when the party suffered a setback losing in all seven assembly segments under the Matua-dominated Ranaghat parliamentary seat and grossly nine seats in Nadia. Earlier in the 2019 Loke Sabha poll, the result was the same as the BJP riding on its “citizenship” promise won both the Matua-dominated seats – Ranaghat and Bongaon in North 24 Parganas.
To retain the support base among the Matuas, Trinamul has taken up an endeavor to access the Matua-dominated areas, mostly in Nadia, North 24 Parganas raising the issue repeatedly that has created restlessness among the community over the delay in implementation of the citizenship act. The initiative has become more important to reunite the community that has been widely divided into two political camps – Trinamul and BJP, with the major part still showing their leanings towards the party at centre.
The Trinamul now trying to encash the restlessness caused among the community due to the delay in implementation of the Act that would ensure their long-awaited citizenship demand as promised by BJP.
After the passing of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 on December 12, 2019, the Union Home Ministry began framing the rules. But the Ministry so far took 9th extension of time to complete the job from the parliamentary committee on subordinate legislation.
Referring to such inordinate delay Abhishek alleged that the BJP has nothing new to offer except misleading Matuas and importing politics of hatred that he had experienced while visiting the clan abode Thakurnagar early this month when he was denied entry by BJP MP Shantanu Thakur.
“Shantanu Thakur closed the gate of Thakurbari temple to deny me entry as I was told to obtain prior permission. I never heard that a person needs permission to enter a temple anywhere. This is a small example of the brand of Hindutva they want to establish in Bengal”, Abhishek said while urging the Matuas to give a befitting reply to such humiliation in the ensuing gram panchayat poll.